Apartment dwellers across Metro Vancouver are less than half as likely to recycle as other types of residents — but commercial waste haulers aren't welcoming the regional authority's attempt to change that.

Across the board, 62 per cent of the region's recycling and composting is diverted from landfills. But Metro Vancouver's estimates show that only 29 per cent of multi-family units do the same.

That's a potentially troubling statistic given that most of the new housing being built in the region is multi-family homes, according to a recent report.

They want to help close the recycling gap between houses and apartments by ensuring all multi-family buildings across the region have access to some type of recycling receptacle, thereby increasing the convenience factor.

Henderson says that, according to the regional authority's estimates, as much as 20 per cent of multi-family and commercial buildings don't have access to recycling containers.

"From an enforcement perspective, it's much more efficient to have a requirement of the hauler rather than a building-by-building requirement," Henderson said.

Henderson says licensing commercial waste haulers isn't a requirement in any other municipality in Canada, as far as he knows. But it is in some U.S. cities; he says Portland has had some success with the licensing model put in place there.

Metro Vancouver staff have recommended that the licence cost about $100 per year. The committee approved that the matter be put forward to the board on July 28.

"With all the discussion about affordability in the region it seems rather tone deaf that Metro Vancouver would introduce a new tax on businesses and residents," said Matt Torgerson, president of the Waste Management Association of B.C.

"This is another attempt by Metro Vancouver to expand their monopoly."

Education initiative

There is at least one other solution being investigated in the Lower Mainland.

This summer, Recycle B.C. will be working directly with 100 multi-family units on education programs to help people understand the importance of recycling.

He says one of the challenges with apartment residents is it's more difficult to provide feedback than it is for single family homes, where it's easier to monitor if people are recycling.

Langdon said the organization will examine the results of that pilot project, and it hopes to be able to apply its findings more broadly across the region or even across the province.

"Because the last thing we want to see is good recyclable materials going in the garbage," he said.